Oscillating-blade or fish-tail propeller.



PATENTED JAN. 29, 1907.

' e. E. WADE.

OSGILLATING BLADE 0R FISH TAIL PROPELLER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 7, 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

.No. 842,278. PATENTBD JAN. 29', 1907.

G. E. WADE. OSCILLATINGBLA'DE 0R FISH TAIL PROPELLER.

APPLICATION FILED KAY 7, 1906.

' 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' GEORGE E. WADE, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

, OSCILLATING-BLA DE OR FISH-TAIL PROPELLEFI- Specification of LettersPatent.

Patented Jan. 29, 1907.

Application filed May 7, 1906. Serial No. 315,623.

To all whom it may conccrwu Be it known that I, GEORGE EDWARD WADE, asubject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at 1 WestHalkin street, London, England, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Oscillating- Blade or Fish-Tail Propellers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to oscillating-blade or fish-tail propellers forpropelling vessels in water, and relates more particularly to the typein which a flexible blade is fixed or hinged at one end to the vessel ina fore-andaft direction, and has for its object to pro-. vide apropeller in which the resistance offered to the progress of the vesselby the ineffective portion of the blade nearest the hinged or fixed endis reduced to a minimum. According to the invention I provide apropeller having two distinct portions, one of which, the blade oreilective portion proper, is attached to the other or ineflectiveportion, which is nearest the hinged or fixed end of the propeller, andI provide the ineffective portion of the propeller cut away and of sucha shape as to offer the minimum ofresistance during its lateral movementthrough the water. Moreover, I provide the blade proper cut away at itsineffective end, at which it is connected to the second portion abovementioned.

According to the invention also I provide curved lateral members aboutwhich the blade may bend and by which it may be reinforced andsupported, while accordin to the invention also I provide the propel erof a "raduated thickness, so that the. blade may in use assume the shapeby which great efficiency may result and by which the use of lateralsupports-may be dispensed with.

The invention is illustrated by. way of example in the accompanyingdrawings.

Figures '1 and 2 are respectively elevation and plan looking upward,showing one form of propeller. Figs.-3 and-4 are res "ectiv-ely Figs. 1and 2 .drawn to an enlarged scale.

, Figs: 5', 6, ,6, and 6 show a furtner constructional modification,'Fig. 5 being a plan, Fig. 6 an elevation, Fig. 6 a section on the linea: as, Fig. 6, and Fig. 6 asection on the line 1/ a. g;

cording 'to Figs. 1 and 2 the effective portion or blade a is connectedto a carrying-frame consisting of longitudinal members I) I),

plan of" In carrying the invention into effect ac-' lated by anyconvenient means within the vessel. The members I) b are preferablysword-shaped in section, so as to cut through the water easily whenmoved in a lateral direction, and are connected at their free endsportion at a cut away, as shown, so as-to leave projecting parts a awhich pass through slots .in the vertical stay at and are secured inposition by pins d d assing through them and the stay (1. It wil beunderstood that when the shaft 0 is oscillated the members I) b willmove laterally, cutting through-the water, and the blade 0, will bebent. or flexed alternately to either side. The members I; b are eachforked at their free ends b b to reinforce and support the blade in itsoscillatory movement, and the parts a. a. are extended so as to pass be-4 the sword shaped cross section of the longitudinal members is shown atf.

shown arranged sideby side. The'vertical shaft 0 may be steadied and thepropeller protected by a suitable stay e. The pro the vibratory eflectupon the vessel. Any suitable means may be employed to obtainthisresult, the movement being given by a motor or any other suitablepower. The projections, b b are curved outward for the gradualreinforcement of the blade.'

I prefer to provide the blade at of graduate thickness, as illustratedin Figs. 5, 6, 6*, and 6*, b which the, use of supports, such as 6 may edispensed with. The forked end parts a of the :blade a may pass throughcorresponding transverse slots provided in and 6, and-the blade may besecured in position on the longitudinal members I) by such means asbolts 9 passing through the respective forked or out ends of the membersb aforesaid. The blade a may, however, be constituted of a number oflaminae or plates instead of a single plate of graduated thickness. Imay provide the effective portionof the blade relatively long or of suchlength double curvature or a number of curvatures of the blade.

Although I have shown the propeller as In the plan view, Fig. 2, twopropellers are pellers are oscillated so that they move in ward andoutward together in order to lessen and thickness that in its use theremay be a mounted on a vertical shaft 0, which is oscilby a stay (1. Oneend of the flexible blade (1 fits freely between the members I) b andhas a tween stops 1) on the members I) b. In Fig.' a

the bolt d, as in the modification of Figs. 5

IIO

consisting of a flexible outer portion and a rigid inner portion, it'isobvious that I may provide either portion flexible or the inner portionflexible and the outer portion rigid without departing from theinvention. Alsosisting of a flexib e propelling portion, the

inefie'ctive portion of which is cut away so as to reduce its resistanceto the lateral movement of the propeller through the Water, a

blade-carrying portion so shaped as to offer but slightresistance to theWater, and curved fork-like projections provided at the free end 20 ofthe'blade-carrying portion for limiting the movement of the flexiblepropelling portion substantially as described.

2. An oscillating or-fish-tail propeller consisting-of a flexiblelaminated propelling portion, the'ineflective portion of which is cutaway so as to reduce its resistance to the lat-. eral movement ofthepropeller through the water, a blade-carrying portion so shaped as -toofier slight resistance to the water, and

fork-like projections provided atthe free end of the blade-carryin'portion for limiting the movement of the exiblelamin'ated bladesubstantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name to thisspecification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses. r GEORGE E.WADE. Witnesses: f v

STANLEY W001), FREDERICK CoLLrNs.

